Driftwood Outdoors

Summer Is The Time To Maintain Treestands

by Brandon Butler

Treestands have come a long way in the last 20 years. When I began hunting in the early 1990s a fancy treestand was one made out of pressure treated lumber. Lesser stands were slapped together with any scrap wood my friends and I could find. Such stands were used season after season until they eventually rotted away and were replaced.

These days, treestands are made of metal and if properly taken care of, can last a lifetime. There are countless models of treestands manufactured by too many companies to list. Ladder stands, climbing stands, fixed stands and tower stands are the different styles of treestands available for purchase. If you’re reading this, then there’s a real good chance that you own at least one of these types of treestand. And while these stands should last quite some time, you need to maintain them properly. Because the truth is, every time you climb into one of these stands 15 feet or higher above the ground, you are potentially risking your life.
Over time treestand parts wear out. Ensure safety by removing and inspecting your treestands every year. (Courtesy Photo)

It’s a general rule of thumb that every 3,000 miles you are supposed to change the oil in your truck. What’s the rule of thumb for maintaining your treestands? Chances are, you’ve probably never heard of one before. Well, let’s go ahead and establish a rule right now. Every year you should inspect and perform routine maintenance on your treestands at least twice. Once when you pull them down after the season, and again before you put them back up in the summer. Of course this means you are not to leave your stands up year after year. You must pull them down each year to inspect and maintain them.

Mike Mattly, the public relation manager for Summit Treestands said, “Whenever you go out to check your stands and take them down always wear a four-point safety harness. And don’t just wear the harness and climb the tree unattached to a safety rope or lineman’s rig. You need to be hooked up the entire time you are off the ground.”

Even if you plan to hunt the same tree again next year, you should pull your stand for inspection and maintenance.

“If you hunt in an area with extreme weather conditions (ice, snow, below zero temps) like Missouri, it is best to pull your stand immediately after season,” Mattly noted. “If the stand isn’t completely sealed, rain can get inside the metal tube. When it freezes, it can split the metal and ruin your stand.”

Once you have your stand down, you need to inspect all the potential failure spots. These include the straps, nuts and bolts, and cables. If any of these look worn, you should replace them.

Most manufacturers offer all the replacement parts you’ll need to keep your treestand operating as new for years on end. Don’t risk your life because you don’t want to spend the time to pull down your stands and replace a few parts.

“If you ever have any doubts as to the safety of your stand, call the manufacturer to discuss,” Mattly advised.